What: Ticket to Ride
When: 6/25/08
How Much: 800MP ($10)

This came out of nowhere, I used to play Ticket to Ride with some family friends all the time on the original board game - so it is pretty awesome to see a board game of my past make its way onto the xbox live arcade.  The downfall to board games is the annoyance of setting up the game, and trying to get friends in you hours to play - both of which are fixed when you put it on the live marketplace.  Give the demo a try if you enjoy some of the other social games on the marketplace (like Catan, or Carcassonne) give it a chance.  I definately am going to give the demo a spin before I leave on vacation this weekend. 

For all you achievement hunters out there - want a peak?  My buddy DaKing has your back , check out the list of 15 achievements for 250 points

Vancouver, Canada (June 23rd, 2008) – This Wednesday, the railway adventure game, ‘Ticket to Ride’, pulls into Xbox Live Arcade. Based on the internationally renowned board game, ‘Ticket to Ride’ is the debut title for Vancouver-based independent publisher, Playful Entertainment. The title is available June 25th, 2008 worldwide for 800 Microsoft points and is rated E for Everyone by ESRB.
 
‘Ticket to Ride’ features simple rules and fast play, promising fun for the whole family. Players plan routes and connect cities across the country in a bid to become the ultimate traveler and earn the most points. ‘Ticket to Ride’ supports up to five people on Xbox Live as they lay track from coast to coast and every city in between.
 
The game features leaderboards, achievements and multiple levels of AI players to keep the challenges coming. Although the game can be learned in under five minutes, players face strategic and tactical decisions that vary with every turn as they connect distant cities and race to complete the most routes.
 
Playing Ticket to Ride:

• Variable difficulty levels: Either locally or in Xbox LIVE® matches, choose Easy, Medium, or Hard A.I. opponents to challenge your gaming skills.
• Multiplayer: Play with up to three of your friends on a single console, or take on Ranked or Player matches over Xbox LIVE with up to five players.
• Leaderboards and achievements: Post your Xbox LIVE match results to the leaderboards. Follow game stats for each player such as Highest Score, Total Trains Played and their Time Spent Playing. And track your progress with twelve new achievements.
• Camera support: See yourself and your friends during gameplay with Xbox LIVE Vision Camera support

Ticket to Ride is based on the board game by noted game designer Alan R. Moon. Days of Wonder released the game in early 2004, becoming the youngest game publisher to win the world’s most coveted game prize, the German Spiel des Jahres Game of the Year Award. With a following in over 30 countries and availability in 11 languages, the board game has an international following.
 

So as of right now we don’t have a show for this week, if we can get together and push a quick one out later this week we will, otherwise  the next show should be released July 14th.  Another reason I wanted to get the show out this week is I am taking the family on vacation this friday and we won’t be back until after July 7th, which gives the show another 2 weeks off.

Keep an eye out for a quick show this week (if we can make it happen) otherwise expect one July 14th. 

We just hit a rash of schedule conflicts and technical difficulties to boot, we haven’t forgot about you - and hopefully you wont forget about us!

[Show as slideshow]

click through to read the full official press release to get more details on the game!

SEATTLE, WA. (June 17, 2008) - Now millions of fans of Discovery Channel’s highest rated and Emmy®-nominated series DEADLIEST CATCH can hunt for elusive King and Opilio Crab in the challenging new Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm video game. The Xbox 360® version of the game is available now at major retailers, with the PC version coming soon.

Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm was inspired by Sig, Edgar and Norman Hansen - three brothers who have made their living crab fishing on the Bering Sea aboard their family’s fishing vessel, the Northwestern. The Hansen brothers started game development with Liquid Dragon Studios in October 2005.

Authenticity and realism were critical to the Hansen brothers. They invited key development team members to Dutch Harbor, Alaska to personally experience life on the Northwestern. The game’s realism is enhanced with four real Bering Sea harbors and 34,000 miles of real Alaskan coastline created from the United States Geological Survey. In addition, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm is the first video game to feature United States Coast Guard vessels and helicopters.

With waves over 40 feet high, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm features the best wave effects in a video game to date. In the words of Captain Sig Hansen, “It may not be life or death, but chills went up my spine the first time I saw the Northwestern sink in the game.”

Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm lets gamers captain their own boat in the frenzied search for King and Opilio crab. Gamers select one of five real crab boats, including the Northwestern, Cornelia Marie and Sea Star - all featured on the series, or create and customize their own boat. Gamers then recruit and manage their own crew from a roster of twenty real crab fishermen. Selecting the wrong boat or recruiting the wrong crew member can mean the difference between landing a Bering Sea jackpot or disaster. The ultimate goal is to return safely each season, upgrade your boat and crew, and attempt to break Captain Sig Hansen and the Northwestern crew’s actual lifetime catch of twenty million pounds.

Features:
· Career Mode (Extremely realistic and challenging simulation for gamers and Deadliest Catch fans
· Missions (Includes United States Coast Guard missions, ice flow navigation)
· Mini-Games (Allows casual gamers to enjoy fun crab boat challenges, including crab boat races and skiff races)
· Five Authentic Crab Boats (including Northwestern and Cornelia Marie)
· Customize Your Own Boat
· 20 Real Fishermen (including Edgar and Norman Hansen, Josh and Jake Harris)
· Five Authentic Captains (including Captains Sig Hansen, Phil Harris and Larry Hendricks)
· 4,500 lines of recorded character dialogue
· 1st Time United States Coast Guard in Video Game
· Captain the 370ft. USCG Cutter Mellon
· Throw-the-Hook Mini-Game
· Skiff Racing Mini-Game
· 34,000 Miles Actual Coastline
· Four real Bering Sea harbors (Akutan, Dutch Harbor, King Cove and St. Paul)
· Virtual tour of the Northwestern crab boat
· 100 exclusive crew videos
· Xbox Live multiplayer for up to eight players

Whether a die-hard fan or someone who has never seen the Discovery Channel series, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm is an immersive and challenging experience, putting them at the helm of one the world’s most dangerous jobs– that of a crab boat captain in the icy Bering Sea.

…So NO show for today, but you can go back to hearing our antics and thoughs about gaming next week.  On a side note hopefully I dont jynx it by saying this but… ITUNES IS WORKING WITH THE SHOW AGAIN!

If you are bored and need to get a little input on what we were up to (at least what i was up to) you can head over and read about my run in with the Gay Pride Parade, Burning Subway trains, rock band so loud i really think we should have been arrested, awesome grilling, and random adventures in Boston this weekend over on my blog

I hope you have had time to give the Aces of the Galaxy live arcade game demo a trial - or if you have the full version, send me a game invite so we can work on those co-op achievements!  If you for some reason haven’t gotten to try the demo, go queue it up for download and then don’t forget to enter our T-Shirt contest compliments of Sierra Games.  Some of my favorite live arcade games are those which I wouldn’t have originally expected to be something I enjoyed before playing the demo.

A few of you have asked (and I wondered myself) what the t-shirts look like, keep reading to see the fine piece of clothing you can use to cover your gamer gut - ok so maybe you aren’t all like me and my rock star gamer gut, but you can still wear it

they also said there is a short sleeve and a long sleeve version of the shirt available.  So enter, and be the jealousy of your town - or send it to me if you don’t want it

Just head on over and leave a comment on the contest blog entry, or the contest entry forum post if you are a registered member and prefer to post it there Before July 19th and you are in the running for a shirt, and if you are looking to work on that ‘gamer gut’ just get yourself a copy of Wii Fit like me - of course it just told me i gained 7 pounds since yesterday which seems a bit unlikely….

GOOD LUCK! 

Show Notes

• Ymiris took a week off (due to surgery to fix the mishap his wood created)
• Star / Ophilye / Tiffany / Ymiris’ wife - stops in to take his place
• Squid plays Kung Fu Panda to get his Martial Arts fix
• Recent Release Thoughts Retail & Arcade
• Ymiris gets busted for using his wife as a gamerscore slave
• Rock band Versus Guitar Hero 3 DLC pricing / thoughts
• Star movie tips
• NEXT week’s show will either be delayed or a week off (more details when we officially decide)
• Don’t forget to sign up for a free t-shirt, compliments of Aces of the Galaxy and Sierra Online

Link Dump

• Star suggestion Two Hot Girls in the Shower
• Star suggestion Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show
• Sierra Games Contest, two choices for entry:
  - leave a reply (forum account required)
  - leave a comment (no account required)
  * only one entry per person duplicate entries will be ignored.

Last Week Winners
last week we had 2 xbox live arcades to give away to you loyal listeners (i forgot to mention you on the podcast but the winners are…

• geoholyhart : Boogie Bunnies
• Tallboy2005: Commanders: Attack of the Genos

keep an eye on your xbox live messages for the game codes. If you all ready have the game feel free to pass it onto a friend, or do your own contest, or whatever!

With the recent release of Aces of the Galaxy on the Xbox Live Arcade, Sierra Online has provided us with five (5) t-shirts to pass onto you readers.  How do you win?  Simple just leave a comment here and you will be included in the random drawing.  

ACES OF THE GALAXY BURSTS ONTO XBOX LIVE ARCADE AND PC
 
Stunning and Hectic Space Action Shooter Now Available
Los Angeles – June 4, 2008 – Sierra Online, a division of Vivendi Games, has released Aces of the Galaxy™, a high octane, retro-arcade 3D space shooter for Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and for PC via download.  Aces of the Galaxy thrusts players into the midst of an epic kill or be killed space battle. Set in stunning, fast-moving environments the chaotic, take-on-all comers action redefines the old-school shooter.

“Players will love how fast and frantic the action gets and the fantastic visuals will really set the game apart from the pack,” said Nicole Perez, vice president of marketing, Sierra Online.  “The overall intensity of Aces of the Galaxy, including some wild multiplayer action offer players some of the best arcade-style gameplay on Xbox LIVE Arcade.”
 
In the Aces of the Galaxy game, players quickly navigate vast, colorful space environments while blasting through onslaughts of enemy ships, dodging asteroids and other terrestrial hazards, avoiding too many damaging hits to their space ship in a frenetic fight for survival. Players take control of the powerful gun turret on an AI-driven spaceship, utilizing the reticule and a fast trigger finger to vaporize wave after wave of enemies. The game features dramatic and strategic effects, including an intense bullet-time feature that slows down the oncoming hordes of enemy ships and dazzling warp zones that propel players through space at the speed of light.
 
Aces of the Galaxy features many different levels and multiple crossroads that enable players to choose among branching paths, providing a choice of experiences while progressing through the game. Players can take on a mass of enemies in a single-player game or team up with a buddy in the co-operative multiplayer mode both online and off.

 The Aces of the Galaxy game is rated E10+ and is available on Xbox LIVE® Marketplace for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft for 800 Microsoft points. For more information visit Acesofthegalaxy.com.  The game is also available for PC via download at Acesofthegalaxy.com

About Sierra Online
Sierra Online, a division of Vivendi Games, creates and publishes quality short- and mid-session, casual online games for all viable gaming platforms.  Sierra Online’s titles include award-winning Xbox LIVE Arcade games Assault Heroes™ and Switchball™, in addition to 3D Ultra™ Minigolf Adventures, available for Xbox LIVE Arcade and Windows PC. The division is also developing a variety of other Xbox LIVE Arcade and Windows-based PC online games targeting the mass-market audience. 

You might have read over at Major Nelson that Call of Duty 4 has decided to take the throne back as the most played Xbox 360 title.  I was reading fourtwozero’s blog today and noticed this weekend is going to be a double XP weekend for all you people gunning the nights away in COD4.  I hope to at least get some play time in - being able to advance my experience two times as much as I normally would, is too good to pass up! 

Show Notes

• ymiris gives us more info then needed about the birds and bees of pinatas
• a chat about Age of Conan and will it / should it be cross platform
• squid is a fool, and couldn’t figure out the rock band mic
• guitar hero ripping off rock band
• marketplace ramblings
• army of two discussion - impressions of the game (pre-free add on)
• Gears of War 2 - we should be able to use useless players as meat sheilds, not just enemies!
• Ant rant - Ninja Gaiden 2 Demo (rumor is it really is coming, and those lucky japanese all ready have it!)
• Ant goes silver (that’s right he went no halo, completely cold turkey)
• No out takes this week - I was kind of lazy on the edits this week

We have 2 xbox live arcade games to give away (thank you Sierra Games)  simply leave a comment before June 10th on this entry to be entered in the random drawing.  It was originally supposed to be a contest based on the game playing in the background by Ymiris’ wife, but I didn’t think you could hear it well - good luck!